§ 89-E — Filing of approval for construction; approval of initial rate schedules; certificate for parallel or duplicate lines

§ 89-e. Filing of approval for construction; approval of initial rate\nschedules; certificate for parallel or duplicate lines. 1. No\nwater-works corporation shall begin construction of a water system or\nextension thereof or exercise any rights or privileges under any\nfranchise hereafter granted, or under any franchise heretofore granted\nbut not heretofore actually exercised, or the exercise of which shall\nhave been suspended for more than one year, without first filing with\nthe public service commission a certified copy of the order, required by\nlaw, of the department of environmental conservation approving the same.\n 2. No water-works corporation shall begin operation of a water system\nor extension thereof, supply water or charge for service without first\nfiling with the commission, at least one hundred twenty days prior to\nthe date upon which service is to begin, a schedule of rates, charges,\nrules, regulations and such further information as the commission may\nrequire showing the basis for the corporation's determination of its\nproposed rate. The commission shall have power to approve or disapprove\nsuch proposed rate, or to condition an approval upon the corporation's\nuse of a specific method of cost apportionment, for both rate and\naccounting purposes, among related enterprises or operations. The\ncommission shall take final action on the proposed schedule of rates\nwithin two hundred forty days after it is filed or after information\nrequired by the commission is furnished, whichever is later, provided\nthat within one hundred twenty days after the schedule is filed or\ninformation received, whichever is later, the schedule of rates filed by\nthe corporation shall be allowed to become effective, either finally or\non a temporary basis, on such terms as may be imposed by the commission\nin accordance with the procedures set forth in section one hundred\nthirteen of this chapter. A water-works corporation shall provide notice\nto the public of such proposed schedule of rates once in each week for\nfour successive weeks in a newspaper having general circulation in the\ncounty or counties containing territory affected by the proposed\nschedule of rates, which notice shall plainly state the proposed\nschedule of rates. Publication must be completed prior to the effective\ndate of the proposed schedule of rates unless the commission shall\notherwise order. The commission may, for good cause shown, waive\npublication of notice to the public under conditions it may prescribe.\nIf such corporation is affiliated with a developer that sells or\nproposes to sell new homes that would receive service from the water\nsystem, notice of the proposed schedule of rates shall be included with\nother informational materials supplied to potential purchasers of such\nhomes.\n 3. No main or conduit of an existing water supply company shall be\nparalleled or duplicated unless and until there shall have first been\nobtained a certificate of convenience and necessity from the commission.\n